Lemuel Hentz, June 10, 2004

HARDY MYERS
ATIORNEY GENERAL
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Lemuel Hentz, SID #6750414
Snake River Correctional Institution
777 Stanton Boulevard
Ontario, OR 97914-0595
1162 Court Street NE
Justice Building
Salem, Oregon 97301-4096
Telephone: (503) 378-4400
TIY: (503) 378-5938
June 10, 2004
Re: Petition/or Public Records Disclosure Order:
Oregon Department of Corrections Records
Dear Mr. Hentz:
PETER D. SHEPHERD
DEPUTY ATTORNEY GEl\iCRAL
This letter is the Attorney General's order on your petition for disclosure under the
Oregon Public Records Law, ORS 192.410 to 192.505. Your petition, which we received on
June 3, 2004, asks the Attorney General to direct Cynthia Cain, Program Services Manager at the
Snake River Correctional Institution (SRCI), and SRCI employees to make available to you
copies of the following records:
1. A copy of any and all memos, incident report, misconduct report and e-mails
wrote (sic) against, Lemuel Hentz #6750414 between January 1, 2004 to April 21,
2004 by any staff;
2. A copy of any and all memo's, incident report, misconduct report and e-mails
wrote (sic) by Ms. C. Cain, between January 1, 2004 to April 21, 2004 in
reference to inmate, Lemuel Hentz #6750414; [and]
3. A complete list of the dates, which inmate Hertz continued this behavior of
watching female staff while in the shower; these dates should not include
February 25, 2004.
For the reasons that follow, we respectfully deny your petition.
The Public Records Law confers a right to inspect any public record of a public body in
Oregon, subject to certain exemptions and limitations. See ORS 192.420. Any person denied
the right to inspect or to receive a copy of a public record of a state agency may petition the
Lemuel Hentz
June 10, 2004
Page 2
Attorney General to review the record and determine if it may be withheld. ORS 192.450. The
Attorney General does not have authority to order disclosure of public records unless the agency
has denied a request for those records. In responding to a public records request, an agency is
permitted a reasonable time to retrieve and review the requested records, and, if necessary, to
consult with legal counsel before providing the records or denying the request. ATTORNEY
GENERAL'S PUBLIC RECORDS AND MEETINGS MANUAL (2004) at 9; Morse Bros., Inc. v. ODED,
103 Or App 619, 622, 798 P2d 719 (1990).
According to your petition, you asked that you be furnished copies of the requested
records on May 16, 2004. You state that, as of the date of your petition, you had not received a
response to your request. We spoke with Bill Doman, Executive Assistant to the SRCI
Superintendent, about your petition.
Mr. Doman told us that Ms. Cain forwarded your request for records to him for response,
and that on June 8, 2004, he sent a memo to Ms. Cain requesting that she provide him with an
estimate of the costs for locating, reviewing, and making copies of non-exempt records available
to you. Mr. Doman has provided us with a copy of your Inmate Communication to Ms. Cain in
which you request copies of SRCI records, and his memo to Ms. Cain requesting an estimate of
costs. Mr. Doman told us that he will respond to your records request once he has received the
cost estimate from Ms. Cain.
Under these circumstances, we conclude that SRCI has not denied your request for public
records. 1 Therefore, we deny your petition as premature.
PE
c: Bill Doman, Executive Assistant to Superintendent Jean Hill, SRCI
PDS:AGS14165
1 Mr. Doman told us that the current balance of your inmate trust account was ten cents. The Public Records Law
permits public bodies to establish and recover fees reasonably calculated to reimburse them for their actual cost in
making public records available, including the time spent by agency staff in locating and reviewing the requested
records in order to delete exempt material. See ORS 192.440(3); see also Public Records Order, April 7, 1989
(Martin). Moreover, public bodies may require a requestor to prepay the agency's estimated costs for doing so.
ATTORNEY GENERAL'S PUBLIC RECORDS AND MEETINGS MANUAL (2004) at 14. Mr. Doman told us that, in
accordance with ODOC's rules governing release of its public records, in order to obtain copies of any non-exempt
records you will be required to have sufficient funds in your inmate trust account to pre-pay SRCI's estimated costs
of locating, reviewing, and making available to you copies of the records.

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HARDY MYERS
ATIORNEY GENERAL
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Lemuel Hentz, SID #6750414
Snake River Correctional Institution
777 Stanton Boulevard
Ontario, OR 97914-0595
1162 Court Street NE
Justice Building
Salem, Oregon 97301-4096
Telephone: (503) 378-4400
TIY: (503) 378-5938
June 10, 2004
Re: Petition/or Public Records Disclosure Order:
Oregon Department of Corrections Records
Dear Mr. Hentz:
PETER D. SHEPHERD
DEPUTY ATTORNEY GEl\iCRAL
This letter is the Attorney General's order on your petition for disclosure under the
Oregon Public Records Law, ORS 192.410 to 192.505. Your petition, which we received on
June 3, 2004, asks the Attorney General to direct Cynthia Cain, Program Services Manager at the
Snake River Correctional Institution (SRCI), and SRCI employees to make available to you
copies of the following records:
1. A copy of any and all memos, incident report, misconduct report and e-mails
wrote (sic) against, Lemuel Hentz #6750414 between January 1, 2004 to April 21,
2004 by any staff;
2. A copy of any and all memo's, incident report, misconduct report and e-mails
wrote (sic) by Ms. C. Cain, between January 1, 2004 to April 21, 2004 in
reference to inmate, Lemuel Hentz #6750414; [and]
3. A complete list of the dates, which inmate Hertz continued this behavior of
watching female staff while in the shower; these dates should not include
February 25, 2004.
For the reasons that follow, we respectfully deny your petition.
The Public Records Law confers a right to inspect any public record of a public body in
Oregon, subject to certain exemptions and limitations. See ORS 192.420. Any person denied
the right to inspect or to receive a copy of a public record of a state agency may petition the
Lemuel Hentz
June 10, 2004
Page 2
Attorney General to review the record and determine if it may be withheld. ORS 192.450. The
Attorney General does not have authority to order disclosure of public records unless the agency
has denied a request for those records. In responding to a public records request, an agency is
permitted a reasonable time to retrieve and review the requested records, and, if necessary, to
consult with legal counsel before providing the records or denying the request. ATTORNEY
GENERAL'S PUBLIC RECORDS AND MEETINGS MANUAL (2004) at 9; Morse Bros., Inc. v. ODED,
103 Or App 619, 622, 798 P2d 719 (1990).
According to your petition, you asked that you be furnished copies of the requested
records on May 16, 2004. You state that, as of the date of your petition, you had not received a
response to your request. We spoke with Bill Doman, Executive Assistant to the SRCI
Superintendent, about your petition.
Mr. Doman told us that Ms. Cain forwarded your request for records to him for response,
and that on June 8, 2004, he sent a memo to Ms. Cain requesting that she provide him with an
estimate of the costs for locating, reviewing, and making copies of non-exempt records available
to you. Mr. Doman has provided us with a copy of your Inmate Communication to Ms. Cain in
which you request copies of SRCI records, and his memo to Ms. Cain requesting an estimate of
costs. Mr. Doman told us that he will respond to your records request once he has received the
cost estimate from Ms. Cain.
Under these circumstances, we conclude that SRCI has not denied your request for public
records. 1 Therefore, we deny your petition as premature.
PE
c: Bill Doman, Executive Assistant to Superintendent Jean Hill, SRCI
PDS:AGS14165
1 Mr. Doman told us that the current balance of your inmate trust account was ten cents. The Public Records Law
permits public bodies to establish and recover fees reasonably calculated to reimburse them for their actual cost in
making public records available, including the time spent by agency staff in locating and reviewing the requested
records in order to delete exempt material. See ORS 192.440(3); see also Public Records Order, April 7, 1989
(Martin). Moreover, public bodies may require a requestor to prepay the agency's estimated costs for doing so.
ATTORNEY GENERAL'S PUBLIC RECORDS AND MEETINGS MANUAL (2004) at 14. Mr. Doman told us that, in
accordance with ODOC's rules governing release of its public records, in order to obtain copies of any non-exempt
records you will be required to have sufficient funds in your inmate trust account to pre-pay SRCI's estimated costs
of locating, reviewing, and making available to you copies of the records.